Barrington turns out for Envision Community meetings

By Melinda Shofner

fosters.com

By Melinda Shofner

Posted Apr. 20, 2014 at 3:15 AM

By Melinda Shofner

Posted Apr. 20, 2014 at 3:15 AM

The Envision Barrington Community Profile meetings took place on April 11 and 12. Around 100 residents took part. This may not sound like a lot in a town of 8,500 but the UNH Cooperative Extension facilitators were quite pleased with the turnout.

The Extension has facilitated this process with many towns. The participants were asked to list what we like about our town, what challenges we face and what we want our future to look like.

There are 11 components that have been identified as qualities that create healthy communities: effective community leadership, informed citizen participation, sense of community, fostering healthy families, individuals and youth, lifelong education and learning, community services facilities and utilities, recreation and cultural heritage, working landscape and natural environment, economic vitality, growth and development, transportation. In small groups, residents came up with five key points to bring back to the larger group for each of the qualities. The categories were then consolidated to seven and people once again met in groups and came up with three important projects for each category.

The whole group then voted on what was felt to be the most important project in each area. People will be meeting independently in groups to work on the projects they were interested in. This information and feedback will aid the town in creating the next master plan.

ACTIVITIES

— The Barrington Historical Society will be meeting on Tuesday, May 6, at 7:00 p.m. at the Green Hill Chapel, 664 Route 9, Barrington. The program for the evening will be “The History of the Christmas Dove” presented by John Svenson. The meeting is open to the public. Refreshments will be served. Please join us.

— Learn to Fly-Fish! This one-day co-ed adult fly fishing class will give you the basic information and skills you need to enter the challenging sport of fly fishing, both freshwater and saltwater. We will cover what makes fly fishing unique; basic equipment needed to get started; safety; ethics; knots; assembling your rod, reel, and line; casting; fly tying; game fish; and basic strategy. Bring your questions and we will provide answers!

This class is part of the New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game Aquatic Education’s Let’s Go Fishing program. The class is taught by certified Fish and Game instructors. Class space is limited, so be sure to register early through the Barrington Recreation Department.

While rods, etc. are provided, bring your own or borrowed additional equipment. Hats and sunglasses are recommended for the casting portion.

The Barrington Public Library is participating in World Book Night. World Book Night U.S. (WBN) is an ambitious campaign to give thousands of free, specially-printed paperbacks to light or non-readers. Volunteer book givers help promote reading by going into our communities and handing out free copies to those without means or access to a printed book.

With the organizational support of local bookstores and libraries, WBN volunteers share the free World Book Night books in locations such as hospitals, mass transit, nursing homes, food pantries, underfunded schools and more. This is not a random giveaway, but a person-to-person, carefully planned outreach.

World Book Night takes place on April 23, 2014 -Shakespeare’s birthday- and is in its third year in the U.S. WBN reach includes all 50 states, Puerto Rico, USVI, and overseas military bases.

The WBN picks are by a wide array of award-winning and bestselling adult and YA authors, as well as classics, books in Spanish, and books in Large Print. The assortment of World Book Night titles is based on diversity in subject matter, age level, gender, ethnicity and geography. The books were chosen in a vote by librarians, booksellers, and last year’s givers.

Volunteers applied online to be givers by stating where they intend to seek out book recipients, and noting which of the special WBN Book Picks they’d like to hand out. The volunteer givers come from all walks of life: teachers, book club members, social workers, first responders, local businesspeople, librarians, booksellers, students, parents, and more.

Of note: It is too late to volunteer to be a giver this year, but anyone can join the WBN mailing list in order to be notified when giver application process begins anew in the fall for 2015.

For more information: www.us.worldbooknight.org

The library will serve as a pick up point for local “givers” and a display of the chosen books for this year will allow our patrons to check out some of these wonderful titles.

— Meet authors of books on learning challenges at Calef’s Country Store, Sunday, April 27th 1-3PM. The authors are: Gina Favazza Rowland, Layne Case, Keeley Shea Patricia McCabe. Each author’s book focuses on a different learning challenge: Down’s Syndrome, Autism, Dyslexia. Books will be available for purchase.

Waste Collection May 3

The 2014 Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day for the communities of Barrington, Farmington, Milton, Middleton, New Durham, Northwood, Rochester, Somersworth, Strafford, and Wakefield will be held on Saturday May 3, from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm at the Turnkey Landfill on Rochester Neck Road in Rochester.